On its face, Michigan State University’s football record against the University of Notre Dame going back to its first meeting in 1897 is undistinguished: The Fighting Irish have won 49 games, the Spartans 29, with one tie.
But that tie is the stuff legends are made of. It has taken its place in college football lore as the Game of the Century. And their matchup at 7:30 p.m. Saturday at Spartan Stadium will mark the 60th anniversary of that 20th century classic.
It will be their first game since 2017, which Notre Dame won. The winner will take possession of the Megaphone Trophy. NBC and Peacock will air the game nationally.
Back on the afternoon of Nov. 19, 1966, more than 80,000 fans were eyewitnesses in East Lansing on a cloudy, windy, near-freezing afternoon. Many more watched it on ABC television nationally.
Future College Football Hall of Fame coaches led the teams. Duffy Daugherty’s Spartans had a 9-0 record and ranked No. 2 for their final game of the season. A victory would give it clear bragging rights as the national champion in an era before a formal playoff system. Under Ara Parseghian, the Fighting Irish were 8-0 and ranked No. 1 with two games to go.
Both teams lived up to the moment.
With a minute-and-a-half to go and overtimes still 30 years off in college football, the score stood at 10-10. Notre Dame had possession.
And then Parseghian made a controversial decision: to run out the clock.
As sportswriter Dan Jenkins put it in Sports Illustrated, Parseghian chose to “tie one for the Gipper.”
Parseghian's call paid off, though. The Fighting Irish went on to defeat the University of Southern California, 51-0, the next week, and the lion's share of national champion honors.
The Spartans went home.